battery swap

[sowbellie]

i have a 1970 john deere 4520 that has two six volt batteries hooked up in series and was wondering if swapping to using two 12 volt batteries hooked up parellel would help my sluggish starting? and also if i would have to change anything other than battery wiring if i did swap?

 

[RickB]

The only benefit would be having two new batteries instead of two old ones, and new cables instead of old ones. There is probably benefit to all that. Replacing the worn out old Delco starter with a Nippendenso would be a large improvement also.

 

[tommu56]

First off welcome!!!!!

You have to look at the amp hour rating usually the 6volts produce more current than the standard 12v.

Did it ever start really fast?
What happens if you jump it does it start faster?
What is the age of the batteries >3 years old maybe bad?
As Rick said clean / replace cables would be my first start and pay attention to the chassis ground its often ignored and worse than the rest.

Tom

 

[Barry Bowen]

Have the starter checked before you do anything with the batteries. I assumed it was batteries on my 1066 this fall and bought 225 worth of batteries for no good reason. Switching to two 12's will not make any difference per say. One of the advantages is that is one cell goes bad you are only down one batterie, and the system does not loose major voltage from the batteries, but does loose amperage. No changes should be needed to the rest of the system, just changing to parallel wiring. It is a smarter move in the long run to have two twelves.

 

[Soundguy]

another thing to look at is the CCA of the bats in question.. pretty easy to come up with some high CCA numbers on 2 12v bats paralleled, vs the 6v bats in series, which will essentially only have the cca of the lower battery.

I would for sure check cables and ground connections, and make sure the starter itself does not have worn bushings, which will cause it to drag.. that and worn brushes... etc.

soundguy

 

[sowbellie]

first of all a big thanks for everones responses so far now to fill in a few blanks i left out. 6 volt battery type is f-03eh with 1040 ca and 875 cca, tractor has never started very good since i have owned it (about 4-5 years) when i jump start it the only difference i notice is just the boost of another battery, and the batteries are about 2 years old and i did buy a matched set. i called and ordered starter brushes but havent came in yet, guess i should start there huh? i was told that by converting to two 12 volt batteries i would be doubling my cranking amps, is this true? and if so wouldnt that be a great help to me?

 

[Just Bill]

I have converted a couple from 2- 6v to 2 -12v with great results in starting the tractors.
Both tractors were constantly having starting problems before the switch.
Also the 12v batteries are easy to find.

 

[Soundguy]

first of all a big thanks for everones responses so far now to fill in a few blanks i left out. 6 volt battery type is f-03eh with 1040 ca and 875 cca, tractor has never started very good since i have owned it (about 4-5 years) when i jump start it the only difference i notice is just the boost of another battery, and the batteries are about 2 years old and i did buy a matched set. i called and ordered starter brushes but havent came in yet, guess i should start there huh? i was told that by converting to two 12 volt batteries i would be doubling my cranking amps, is this true? and if so wouldnt that be a great help to me?

Ok.. so you have 2 6v bats with 875 cca... in series.. you got 12v and ... 875cca. stick 2 12v bats in there and you will have likely 1400-1700 cca, as you can surely get 12v 700+ cca bats.

you do the math...

soundguy

 

[sowbellie]

nuff said, thanks again to everones replies

 

[Transit]

Batteries and starter are only 1/3 the storey, what condition are the cables and connections in? A starter will draw 200+ amps, are the cables the correct gauge? How do you know that the batteries are fully charged?